The Eye of My Unknown Storm
by RadiantFire
Summary: Hiccup and the riders discover a strange and unfamiliar dragon encased in ice. As they try to unveil the name of the dragon, Hiccup is confronted by a famailar face; a dangerous criminal that Hiccup feared greatly without being aware of it. Worst of all, that criminal wants the new dragon.
1. Chapter 1

Draymore opened his eyes, glancing at Hiccup's bed. He was hoping to at least see Hiccup calmly resting under the covers. Those nightmares had been taunting his sister for a long time; for almost four weeks Draymore had to put up with listening to Hiccup whimpering, unable to do anything to help her.

However, when Draymore looked at Hiccup's bed, he only saw a fur blanket hanging over the edge of the bed. Hiccup was nowhere to be seen.

Draymore quickly scanned the room, not finding any signs that Hiccup was there.

"Hiccup?"

There was no response.

Draymore climbed out the ceiling window and scanned the sky. "Jack! I need your help!"

A cold breeze announced the Guardian's arrival as the white-haired boy landed in front of the young Lighren. "What's going on? Is it Hiccup?"

"I can't find her. She's gone."

Jack looked to the forest, "Shit. What is going on?"

Draymore changed form and stared at nothing, letting the silence overwhelm him. It wasn't long before Jack watched as the dragon's ear turned in the direction of a noise that he couldn't hear himself.

Toothless glided to the woods and followed the noise, Jack following in quick pursuit.

As Jack flew after Toothless through the somewhat dense canopy of trees and brush, the noise slowly grew loud enough for him to hear it.

Eventually, Jack and Toothless stopped at the edge of the cove. Jack was confused until he saw a girl sitting on a rock by the water. The girl had brown hair, and two black wings were resting on the stone.

Hiccup.

Jack attempted to fly into the cove and carry Hiccup away before Toothless stopped him. Jack could see his worst fears unfolding before him as Pitch Black rested both hands on Hiccup's shoulders.

Hiccup looked scared but she didn't fight back. Pitch didn't do anything to Hiccup besides make gestures that neither Jack or Toothless could understand. There was one point when Pitch lead Hiccup off the boulder and held her close. I looked as if Pitch was trying to surround Hiccup with his black sand, but then it looked like he was hugging her. He wasn't forcefully hugging her; he was genuinely hugging her, like a father would.

Jack felt as though his jaw had dropped to the floor when Hiccup smiled at Pitch. They were talking amongst each other like they were great friends.

Eventually their conversation ended, and Hiccup walked out of the cove, leaving Putch to vaporize into the air.

000

"Now," said Pitch, "when you get to the glacier, I need you to find them and save them from an attack. I'll have the Berserkers go after them to stage it."

Hiccup nodded in understanding.

"I hope you can gain the dragon's trust quickly after you meet him," said Pitch.

Hiccup sighed, "I'm still not sure about this. What if the others find out?"

"They won't. I promise. I'll make sure of it. You just need to worry about getting there."

Hiccup stared at Pitch with an unsure expression. When Pitch smiled sweetly, Hiccup smiled back.

Pitch inhaled deeply, "I know this is hard to hear but you'll have to wait a few days first; at least until the others have noticed their absence."

Hiccup nodded again. "I understand."

Pitch looked around them as if suddenly startled. He looked to Hiccup one last time and nodded to the exit, "You should go. The sun will rise soon."

Hiccup nodded and began her journey back. She turned back one last time, "And Pitch?"

Pitch looked to her.

Hiccup smiled, "Thank you... for everything. I really owe you."

Pitch made a bow, "Anything for the heir to the throne of Berk."

Hiccup followed the barely-visible trail through the forest. She was sure that someone was nearby when she heard the bushes rustling.

She turned to look behind her, finding nothing but the trail. When she turned back to continue, she jumped at the sudden figure in front of her.

Thinking the figure was an Outcast, Hiccup drew her claws and growled before she realized that the figure was too small to be an Outcast. Hiccup hid her claws in her fingers and sighed as she recognized the man.

"Damn it, Dray. Don't sneak up on people like that. You'll scare them."

"Oh, I'll scare them," exclaimed Draymore in a sarcastic tone, "I'll scare you-what? Like you keep scaring me at night for the past four weeks?"

Hiccup sighed, "I can't control what dreams I have!"

"But you can control wether or not you leave the house and run into the woods at night. The worst part is you go out to meet up with this random guy!"

"Who also happens to be Pitch Black out of all people!" added Jack.

"Well of course you know him!" Hiccup said, gesturing to the Guardian, "He told me that you were his friend."

Jack swallowed back laughter, "That is a lie! He is not my friend!"

"Then who is he?"

"He is someone you need to ditch! You can't trust him!"

"I find that hard to believe. Since you know I've been seeing him then surely you'd know why I'm saying this!"

"He's using you Hiccup! If you don't stop seeing him you might find yourself locked away in some cave!"

"Well it's better than what you guys have been doing! He's the one helping me! What have you two done besides pressure me?"

"You never gave us the chance to help you!" Draymore yelled. "All you do is change the subject and avoid those nightmares all together!!"

"I don't need your help now! I'm fine!"

"No you're not! It's like you're going insane!!"

"SHUT UP!" Hiccup screamed. Her hair and eyes turned dark with her arms growing dark. Jack and Draymore jumped back at the sight of Hiccup's nightmarish face and froze.

Hiccup flinched, waiting a few moments before inhaling deeply, "I'm sorry... I know I should've told you but... I just... I don't know what else to do."

Draymore gently wiped a tear off Hiccup's face, "It's okay. I shouldn't have pushed you-I just... I'm just tired of watching you cry while you sleep. I can't stand not being able to help. I want to help you, Hiccup, but if you don't want to tell me that's fine... But sooner or later you're gonna need to tell someone."

Hiccup nodded. "Later... Please? Just later."

Draymore sighed, then nodded. "Okay. For now, let's just go home."

All three of them remained silent the rest of the walk back. None said anything; nor did they make any gestures to one another.


	2. Chapter 2

Three days passed. As Pitch had promised, everyone had noticed that the people he was talking about had not yet returned. Mulch and Bucket were on a fishing trip, and were only supposed to be absent four days. They had been missing for a week's time now. Stoick eventually grew worried and had Hiccup gather her friends for a search-and-rescue mission.

Getting them ready for the search wasn't a problem for Hiccup. The riders were overjoyed to have a reason to leave Berk for a day or two. After two hours of searching and no progress, it was remaining focused on the task that grew more difficult for them; Snotlout and the twins had prelacticallu given up and decided to fly a little farther from the group to play _I Spy._

Astro had played sheep-dog and forced them to rejoin the group a few dozen times until Hiccup told him to just leave them.

"They'll just fly away again. They'll find their way back eventually. The twins will help us with their obnoxious gas explosions."

The sun began to descend toward the horizon as the afternoon dragged on to evening. There was sill no sign of the fishermen. Fishlegs was just about to suggest setting up a camp somewhere when Hiccup's ears suddenly perked up and twitched in small circles. Hiccup had heard voices; the voices were unfamiliar to her but she knew them at the same time.

Hiccup made a loud purr and had Toothless dive down. Astro and Fishlegs followed, Snotlout and the twins joining in after hearing Hiccup's call. All five dragons ended the descent and glided silently over a groups of glaciers.

Hiccup sighed with relief as she saw a ship that was docked beside one of the glaciers. She quickly hid her expression as she observed the events going down on the ship.

Half a dozen Berserkers were patrolling the ship. Three of them guarding two middle-aged men that were bound to the mast; Mulch and Bucket. A maximum of five more Berserkers gathered at one of the glacier walls as if guarding it.

Hiccup turned to Snotlout and balled her left hand into a fist, making an explosion gesture with it. Snotlout nodded l, smiling deviously, and flew down toward the hostiles.

The Berserkers jumped at the sight of a Monstrous Nightmare. They were even more shocked as a Ziipleback landed on the glacier, bucking and kicking at them, often whipping an unaware Berserker with its tails.

Fishlegs had Meatlug make a stream of lava between the Berserkers and the captives. Astro and Hiccup landed their dragon's on the same side of the lava stream as the captives. Hiccup dismounted Toothless and lept over the lava stream, baring her claws and taking aim at the nearest soldier. The Berserker had a scar over his eye; it looked somewhat familiar. The man paused when he saw her wings but regained his courage.

The Berserker warrior raised his sword in a predatory manner. Hiccup lowered her body until she was on all-fours. She pushed her body off the ground with her legs and wings and tackled the man. She pushed the man with enough force to knock him down along with two other men. Three other Berserker soldiers ran at Hiccup with their swords drawn.

000

Suddenly Hiccup was no longer on the glacier. Now, she was on another island. This island was unfamiliar. Hiccup was surrounded by men that were holding various weapons; all of them ran at her yelling many things.

"Get her!"

"Be careful! She's dangerous!"

"Kill the Demon!"

Hiccup drew back her head and screamed up to the clouds. Her scream was so loud that even she had to cover her ears. She managed to look around her and see the men covering their ears. Hiccup saw a chance and jumped on the closest man, clawing at his face. She dazed him with a shock and jumped on the next man.

000

Hiccup gasped as if from lack of air and collapsed on her knees. She remained still with her eyes closed for a moment before finally opened her eyes. A frightened Berserker stood in front of her. She stood up and spun around, finding one of the hostiles on his hands and knees, holding one hand over his eye.

"By Odin!" a Berserker exclaimed, "It is her! It's the assassio! It's Thor's Demon!"

"Run!"

"Stand firm! We can take her!"

"She burned her village! We'll die if we stay!"

"Just run!"

Hiccup stood there dumbfounded as the last of the Berserkers fled to the lifeboats in desperation to get away. She turned to face Astro as he stopped next to her.

Astro shook his head, both amused and shocked, "What are they going on about?"

Hiccup ignored him. She had heard that name before. It must have been in her dreams because it was almost forgotten by this time.

"So, Mulch," said Tuffnut as he untied the fishermen, "why were those guys holding you like this? Did you insult the looks on their faces when you snuck up on them?"

Mulch shook his head, "We saw them here and thought their ship had been caught in the ice. When we offered to help they captured us. Apparently we found something valuable to them; something with a value that could cause you death if you're not supposed to see it.

Hiccup turned to face Mulch, pretending not to know what he was talking about. "What did you see?"

Bucket pointed at the ice wall that the Berserkers were previously guarding, "That pretty dragon."

Fishlegs followed Bucket's pointing finger and gasped at the sight, quickly squealing with delight. A large, purple, serpent-like dragon lay encased in the wall of ice. Though it's appearance and build were distorted by the ice, Fishlegs waisted no time in carefully observing the beautiful dragon.

Snotlout looked at Hiccup in expectation as he waited for her suggestion-more like her order.

Hiccup sighed, "Okay, this is huge! Any volunteers to help cut a block out?"

Astro side glanced at Hiccup, "We're takin it back to Berk are we?"

"We're gonna try."


	3. Chapter 3

Once the block of ice had been placed in the center of the arena, Fishlegs and Hiccup were examining the mysterious dragon. Fishlegs had a pencil and paper in hand while Hiccup just rested her palm against the glass, admiring the creature.

The dragon's scales were painted with different shades of purple, its underbelly nearly drained of the colour. Its head resembled that of a serpent, with violet spikes reaching toward its spine. Spikes outlined the top of its tail. The dragon only had two hind legs, with a claw reaching out of each wing where the bones of the wing would meet.

Once Fishlegs was satisfied with the sketch, he turned to Hiccup with his eyes still beaming. "What kind of dragon do you think this is?"

Hiccup shrugged slightly, "Could be a Strike Class dragon, or possibly Mystery."

As Ruffnut circled the block impatiently, Tuffnut slammed his fists against it and shouted, "Then why don't we let it out and ask it?"

Astro sighed as he hid his face in the palm of his right hand, "Sorry if this is a little negative but isn't this dragon kind of... dead?"

Fishlegs shook his head, "There are dragons that can survive in states like this for centuries. It's like a power nap or something similar."

Draymore had been staring at the dragon since they returned. He also wanted to learn about it, but he was also cautious. He had many encounters with unfamiliar dragons growing up, and he didn't want anyone else having to endure them. "Let's just get the _Book of Dragons_ and look it up before we let the twins do something stupid."

Jack flew into the arena and turned to Draymore. "Your dad wants to know what you brought back."

Hiccup glanced at the dragon, "Maybe I should stay here."

"Why?" asked Snotlout.

Hiccup shrugged, "He's been in that ice for Thor knows how long. Maybe he could use some company."

"Why can't the twins stay here? Or maybe me?"

"I don't trust you three."

Astro shrugged, "Fine by me. Come on guys. Stoick's waiting."

Hiccup watched the others leave the arena. Snotlout was hesitant, but he left anyway.

000

Upon entering the Great Hall, Fishlegs ran to a bookshelf in the corner to retrieve the _Book of Dragons_ Astro explained what had happened during the search, adding on that they were trying to learn about the dragon. Astro left out Hiccup's rabid behavior because he didn't want to worry Stoick.

Fishlegs came running back as he opened the book, presenting a page that he saved with his index finger. The same dragon was sketched into the book, along with a little Viking to represent the scale of the dragon. The dragon was called the Skrill, a rare, Strike Class dragon that could harness lightning from a storm and direct it in any direction the dragon desired.

Stoick suddenly grew worried. He turned Draymore to face him and nearly shook him violently as he asked, "Please tell me you didn't leave Hiccup in there with it!"

"Uh, yeah," confessed Draymore, "We did. Why?"

Stoick bolted for the door, the teenagers running after him in confusion.

000

Hiccup was standing in front of the dragon in the ice, her hand pressed gently against it. She didn't know whether the dragon was awake or in some sort of coma, but she spoke to him.

 **"I'm probably just talking to myself here... but I need your help. About a month ago i was hit by lightning, and... I gained the ability to control it. I know this sounds stupid but I don't know how... and I'm scared because it's growing. It's getting harder to hold it back. I'm scared that I'll end up hurting somebody. I don't want that to happen. Please. I need your help... please."**

Hiccup rested her forehead against the ice and closed her eyes. She waited for a response, though she doubted it would come.

Suddenly, Hiccup heard thunder. She looked up to the sky and saw a cloud, flickering with lightning. This must have been the answer because there were no clouds moments ago. Hiccup thought she saw something moving within the cloud. She could have sworn that she saw two large wings.

She waited for something. She didn't know what she was waiting for but she waited.

Out of nowhere a masked girl landed in front of her. Hiccup jumped back as the girl quickly drew a sword from its sheath. The girl lunged at Hiccup so quickly that she almost had no time to react. The blade cut her in her left arm.

Hiccup glided to the other side of the arena. She was horrified when the girl did the same. Hiccup desperately ran to the weapon stand, pulled the closest thing off of it: a knife.

Hiccup spun around and parried the sword before it could penetrate her neck. The masked girl tapped the blade of the sword with her finger, causing it to flicker with lightning. The electricity quickly ran through the sword blade, to the knife blade, to the handle, through Hiccup's arm, and down her body to the floor. Hiccup yelped and dropped her knife.

The girl pounced on Hiccup and pinned her to the ground. As Hiccup fell, she tried to knock her attacker back with fire, missing and hitting the giant block of ice instead. Hiccup's head hit the stone floor so hard that Hiccup was stunned long enough for the girl to get a good grip on Hiccup's throat.

Hiccup barely gasped, desperate to breathe again. She reached up for the girl, trying to scratch her; but she ended up pulling the girl's mask off her face.

Hiccup froze, forgetting that she was being choked out. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. The girl's face mirrored hers. She had the same purple eyes and black hair. Hiccup then realized that this girl had wings just like her. The only differences Hiccup could see were two, blood-red, curved tattoos that were painted on the girl's cheeks. Each tattoo reach from her ear to her nose.

Hiccup remembered that she couldn't breathe, but she lay there, both shocked and confused. She blacked out for a moment. She regained enough consciousness to watch the girl calm the now-free dragon and ride him out of the arena, flying in the direction of the glacier where he was found.


	4. Chapter 4

A muffled voice called to Hiccup through the darkness. At first it was impossible to understand the voice, but it slowly got louder and clearer as Hiccup regained consciousness.

Finally, Hiccup was fully awake. Her father was shaking her as he yelled, "Hiccup! Hiccup wake up! Answer me!"

Realizing that she could breathed, Hiccup gasped and coughed, clutching her throat as it throbbed with pain.

"What took you so long?" Hiccup managed to ask through a withered voice.

Stoick sighed and hugged Hiccup tightly, "Oh thank Thor! You're okay!"

Hiccup ignored Stoick and looked to Astro, "Where is she?"

Astro tilted his head, "She?"

Hiccup's eyes widened. The others weren't there when the girl escaped. Then she remembered accidentally freeing the dragon. She got to her feet and looked around in hope of finding the dragon. It was gone.

"No!" Hiccup yelled in frustration, "No no no! Thi-this can't be happening! No!"

"Hiccup," said Jack, "What can't be happening? What happened?"

Hiccup didn't answer. Instead of answering, she took off, flying after the thief from memory.

Hiccup stopped and looked around her. There was nothing but clouds in all directions. Then Hiccup sensed something behind her. She quickly turned and saw the girl diving toward her with unrealistic speed.

Hiccup turned to dodge the girl, but as the girl fell passed Hiccup, the girl seized Hiccup by her wing and dislocated it.

Hiccup's body went limp in an attempt to look dead. Hiccup looked all around her for the girl but she was nowhere to be seen. The Hiccup saw her flying alongside a purple dragon as lightning flickered in its spines.

Hiccup spread her wings and attempted to stop her descent, only to have an agonized yell pulled from her throat. Glancing at her right wing, she could see that the bone that connected her wing to her body was out of place. Instead of gliding, Hiccup crashed into the ocean. As she broke the water's surface she could feel it pulling against her injured wing.

When Hiccup resurfaced, she instinctively looked all around her for something to grab on to. It didn't take long for Hiccup to find a large fishing boat.

"Hey!" Hiccup screamed, flailing her arms, "Over here! Help!"

The sight of a man looking at her from the ship and motioning for others to come couldn't have been more comforting. Hiccup swam to the boat and climbed up the side with her claws. Two middle-aged men helped her climb over the edge and onto the main deck.

Hiccup sat down and leaned against the tail of the ship. She looked up at the sky, looking for that girl; the Lighren was nowhere to be seen.

"Sweet Thor!" breathed one of the crew members. Hiccup looked at him. He seemed terrified.

Hiccup made a single circular motion with her hands, "What?"

The man looked around the deck at his fellows sailers, "Guys! Don't you know who this is?"

One of the men who had helped Hiccup onto the boat suddenly gasped and backed away, "Don't let her near you!"

Hiccup tilted her head in confusion. The other man that helped her then grabbed her by the arm and threw her into a hole that was in the middle of the deck. Hiccup fell at least nine or ten feet before she landed on the floor. Hiccup looked up and watched the man slam a barred door on the hole.

Hiccup had been thrown into a cell.

Hiccup glared up at the man in disbelief, "What the fuck are you doing?"

The man kneeled and rested a hand on the bars, "What do you think we're doing?"We're turning you in. I thought you'd know."

"Turning me in to who? I didn't even do anything!"

"Oh really?" asked a fourth man, "Well, this says a otherwise!" He threw a sheet of paper down into the cell.

Hiccup caught it and observed what it displayed. She The first thing she saw was a sketch of herself. She was wearing a hood and had two tattoos on her face, reaching from her ears to her nose.

Just beneath her picture was information for a wanted criminal. The girl in the sketch was wanted for countless murders and assassinations. The girl was called Gale Unferth. She was publicly known as Thor's Demon. If she was caught or killed, she was to be turned in to the authorities of Outcast Island.

Hiccup shook her head and looked up at the men, "This isn't me! It's someone else!"

"And why should we believe you?"

"I saw her just a few minutes ago! She injured my wing and I fell down!"

"Enough!" yelled a rough voice. A buff man with tanned skin and black hair knelt down beside the cell, staring down at Hiccup. Hiccup suddenly wanted to back into a corner and hide. She didn't like the way the man looked. His eyes looked familiar. They didn't seem to have any colour.

The man shook his head, "She will not eat all night. Do not speak with her. Do. Or offer her anything. We cannot risk letting her out again. She must pay for her sins!"

There was cheering above. Some men that passed her cell spat at her. Some gave her the finger. There was one man who specifically told her, "I hope you burn in Hellheim."

Hiccup sat in the fetal position in the cell as she kept asking herself the same question when she realized no one else would listen.

"What did that girl do?"


	5. Chapter 5

Hiccup sat in the corner of the cell the entire evening and through the dark of the night. She couldn't sleep because of the hard wood. The walls and floor were rigged with old splinters and barnacles that were thrown into the cell to add discomfort. The whole night was spent looking up at the sky, watching lightning flicker in the clouds and listening to the thunder. As the morning dragged on, the sailors resumed their tasks. As far as anyone was concerned, Hiccup was dead to them.

As Hiccup watched the clouded out of boredom, she noticed a large bird passing above them. There were five large birds with different shapes and sizes. They even had peculiar appearances in their wings and tails.

 _Wait a minute! Those aren't birds! Those are dragons!_

Hiccup jumped up at the bars and reached out at the dragon's, roaring loud enough to be heard from miles around. It didn't take long for one of the sailors to strike Hiccup's arm with his helmet. Hiccup fell back down with a loud thud.

Moments later Hiccup could hear yelling as the dragon's attacked the ship. Again Hiccup reaches out of her cell as dragon's flew over her. She called to them as loudly as she could. She began to grow confused when no one stopped to let her out.

Finally a Monstrous Nightmare stopped at the cell and pulled on the bars. Hiccup smiled and glanced at the dragon's neck, finding that no one was there. As Hiccup observed the dragon longer, she realized that it had bright orange scales instead of the blood red ones Hookfang had.

The bars snapped off the hinges and the dragon pulled Hiccup out of the cell. Hiccup quickly mounted the Monstrous Nightmare and and the dragon flew away with the other dragons.

The Monstrous Night joined the group of dragon's and fled the ship. The dragon flew above the clouds for half an hour in silence. Hiccup asked the dragon where he was going but he only responded in a low grunt. Eventually, the Monstrous Night mare began to dive. Once he cleared the clouds Hiccup saw a small island with a camp on the beach.

There was a campfire in front of a cave; a girl stood in front of the cave entrance. As the dragon Carried Hiccup closer to the island, Hiccup recognizes the girl as the same one from the storm.

The group of dragons landed around the girl as she approached the Monstrous Nightmare. She rested her head against the dragon's head and purred, **"Thanks for the help."**

The dragon roared to his companions and followed them to the skies as he left Hiccup with the girl.

The girl sat down on a fallen log next to the fire and held up a fish, "Hungry?"

"Um..." stuttered Hiccup, "no thank you."

The girl tried to hide a frown with a smug smile, "I find it hard to believe that you're not hungry. You spent a full day's time locked away without food," She patted the log, "Come on. I won't hurt you."

Hiccup stepped forward, but then she stopped, "Why did you help me back there?"

The girl shook her head, "I didn't help you. Those dragon's did. I just told them where you were."

Hiccup gestured to the ocean, "But I looked like you. They thought they had you. That's the perfect get-out-of-prison cars right there! Why didn't you take it?"

"Are you calling me stupid for letting those dragon's help you?"

"Well, if you'd left me there, those people would think that you're gone. That would give you a chance to start over... so... ugh. Never mind. Forget it."

The girl shook her head, "No. I didn't want you to get the punishment I deserve. That isn't fair."

"You're wanted for murder and you believe in being fair?"

"I don't murder random people. I kill people to avenge the people they wronged."

Hiccup hid her face in her palm, "I can't believe this. First I lose a dragon, then I'm mistaken for a psychotic murderer."

The girl chuckled, "I'm not a psychotic murderer. I'm an assassin."

"The difference?"

"The difference being one is a job and the other's a mental disorder."

"Oh my gods."

"What?"

"What do you mean 'what'? I'm stuck in the middle of nowhere with an assassin! I can't even defend myself from you! You've proven that twice!"

"Just be thankful you're not still on that boat. You'd be praying for mercy once they brought you to Outcast Island for my punishment."

"And what would that be?"

"Oh nothing; just death by beheading."

"Sweet Thor! Who did you kill?!"

"I don't know. I lost count. I've killed at least a hundred people, I think."

Hiccup side-glanced to the sky, wanting to fly away. She would have done that thirty-five second ago if her wing wasn't broken.

The girl sighed, "Okay, I think we should stop talking about my job. Let's just work on fixing that wing," She approached Hiccup and made her sit on the log, examining her wing. "Okay, hold still. This might hurt."

The girl pulled on Hiccup's wing. Hiccup yelled at the pain as she heard her wing popping back in place. The sound was slightly disturbing but the pain faded quickly.

Hiccup sighed, "I don't understand you. Yesterday you tried to kill me and now your helping me?"

The girl sat next to Hiccup, "I was just trying to help that dragon. I thought you were holding him captive so I tried to free him. Then I saw you following us and I wanted to defend the dragon. Later the dragon told me what you said to him before I came, so I decided to help you myself. So, what's the hardest thing about this lightning power?"

"Well..." Hiccup inhaled deeply, "I'm kind of having troubles with everything. The worst part is that it keeps getting stronger."

"No."

"What?"

"A Lighren's power doesn't grow in strength. That's a myth."

"Then why is the lightning getting more severe every time I lose control?"

"You're lying to yourself. You're letting your fear co from you power. You need to control your fear. If your fear is under control, you powers will be too."

"How do you know this?"

"I learned it myself. I learned it shortly after learning about the stress thing. I used to think that you'd go rabid after losing your temper, but you're body's just reacting to a large amount of stress. Too much stress can cause things like that. Ever since I learned to control my stress, I've been able to let myself be angry without hurting someone accidentally."

The girl entered the cave. When she returned she handed Hiccup a map. She pointed to a small island a few inches to the left of Dragon Island. "If you go east, you can reach Dragon Island within an hour. Think you can find your way home from there?"

Hiccup nodded.

"Okay," the girl sighed, "If you want more help with the lightning, you can meet me at that island on the full moon. Just call my name and I'll be there. You remember my name, right?"

Hiccup looked up to the girl, "Gale?"

Gale nodded. "One more thing. What's your name?"

"Hiccup. My name is Hiccup."

Gale seemed surprised at the mention of Hiccup's name, but she nodded to cover it. "Well, Hiccup. I hope I'll see you at Dragon Island. And remember, if you tell anyone where this island is, I know where you live."

Hiccup smiled slightly before stretching her wings and taking off to fly home.


	6. Chapter 6

Berk was now visible over the sea level. Hiccup quickened her pace as the island gradually increased in size.

As Hiccup approached the island, she began to think of what she would tell the others. There was no doubt they'd bombard her with questions such as, "Where were you?" "What happened?" or "Who had you gone after?"

Just as Hiccup was passing one of the giant Viking statues, gruesome visions flashed through her mind. They were visions of her nightmares. All Hiccup could hear was screaming as the visions replayed over and over. Hiccup had completely forgotten that she was flying, and crashed into sea.

Hiccup resurfaced and clumsily swam the rest of the way to the beach, coughing up the saltwater she had accidentally swallowed. Once she could breathe again, she collapsed in the sand and rolled onto her back. She covered her face with her hands and screamed out of frustration and anger. If these dreams continued, they'd be the death of her if not the cause of her insanity.

Hiccup took a moment to calm down before venturing through the forest to the village, her destination being her house. She had decided that it was time for Draymore to know what was happening to her.

As Hiccup walked through the village to her home, she began to notice a difference in the people. Whenever they saw her, they became cautious and afraid. Mothers instinctively stepped between Hiccup and their children. Men would move their hands close to their weapons, ready to defend themselves against her if she attacked. This was the behaviour that spread throughout the village. As Hiccup approached her friends, they too displayed caution. Even Astro began to look at Hiccup questioningly.

"Astro?" Hiccup asked, "What's going on? Why is everyone scared again?"

Astro shrugged and shook his head, "I've heard these rumours all morning. Everyone's been having nightmares. All of the nightmares are of you killing them. The ways they described their deaths, they're horrific. One claimed that you threw someone's head at him before you burned him alive."

Hiccup's jaw dropped. She remembered her second nightmare.

000

"Where is Stoick the Vast?!" Hiccup heard Horc hell to himself as he waited just outside the forest. Stoick has gone searching for Hiccup an hour ago and had not yet returned. Horc was waiting for him to discuss the upcoming Treaty signing with the Berserker chief.

Horc let out a frustrated yell, "The man just can't let the demon-child be, can he? The girl has fire and wings. She can surely defend herself against any overgrown snake that goes after her. Personally, if I were her father, I'd have fed her to the beasts before she could open her eyes for the first time. Given them a devil to worry about themselves."

Horc heard rustling did leaves behind him. He turned as Hiccup walked around a tree to face him. Hiccup's hands were covered in blood. Her wings and hands were covered in blood. She was holding something under her arm, and it was wrapped in cloth.

Horc observed the package in confusion. "What's in there?"

Hiccup remained silent as she glanced to the bundle, then to Horc. She stepped closer to him, but stopped when he drew his axe.

"Don't toy with me, girl! I don't care if your Stoick's daughter. I will kill you if you try anything."

"I don't care either. Neither does my so-called father..." Hiccup threw the package toward Horc. The cloth became undone as it rolled along the ground and exposed the bloodied head of Stoick.

Hiccup laughed as Horc's fear grew, "..at least, not anymore.

"You monster!" the man shouted, "What did you do to him?"

"I did what dragons do. They kill. Draining the life from anything that moves. Anything like you."

Hiccup raised her hand and slowly balled it into a fist. Her smile widened as Horc's body was engulfed in flames.

000

"Hiccup!" Astro snapped his fingers just inches away from Hiccup's face.

Hiccup blinked and looked up to Astro as he asked, "What's up? Is something wrong?"

Hiccup sighed, "I am so sorry guys. This is all my fault."

Draymore was just walking passed when he heard Hiccup's statement. "Why would this be your fault?"

Hiccup turned to face Draymore, "I've been having all those dreams, every night, it's all I ever dream about anymore."

"Hey," said Astro, resting a hand on Hjccup's shoulder, "Eveythings gonna be okay. Not everyone us having those dreams. I'm not."

Hiccup was confused. She had dreamt of killing Astro. She didn't kill him slowly like she had the others. Instead, she gave him a quick death, nothing but a strike to the head with lightning.

"Hey!"

Hiccup and her friends turned to face the source of the voice. One of Sven's brothers stepped forward to confront Hiccup, "You got any explanation for what the hell happened last night?!"

"Oh, I don't know." replied Hiccup sarcastically, "Maybe a lot of people are having the same nightmare?"

"Would you mind telling us how you knew that?"

"Astro just told me."

"Do you know what it means?"

"Well, no. But I-"

"Then how do we know that nightmare isn't warning us about something?"

"It's not."

"You know something, Hiccup? I don't believe you. I'm going to keep an eye on you. If you try anything, Stoick will hear about it."

Hiccup sighed. "Okay."

The man glared at Hiccup before he turned to walk away. A few others did the same.

Astro hugged Hiccup in an attempt to comfort her. "Don't worry, Hiccup. None of that is going to happen. I promise."


	7. Chapter 7

Hiccup opened her eyes and scanned the room. She appeared to be standing in some sort of of bar. There were dozens of tables spread throughout the room, every second table with a couple Vikings seated at them. Hiccup noticed that she was seated at a table in the corner farthest from the main doors, holding a mug of alcohol.

A man sat down across the table from Hiccup with a satisfied smile across his face. He was wearing a black fur coat with brown, leather gloves. He had dark eyes and hair, making his skin seem pale. The way he looked at Hiccup seemed as though he were studying her to confirm she was the one he wanted to see.

Hiccup sighed with relief, "It's about time you showed up. It's bad luck to be in one location too long."

"I agree with you," the man replied. He pulled a sheet of paper out of his satchel and placed it on the table for Hiccup to see. Covering the paper was a sketch of a ship, almost like one of those ships that people went on for a pleasure voyage.

Hiccup pointed at the paper, "This is the ship I need to find?"

"Yes. That ship belongs to me. This ship is where I spend most of the year. No one boards the ship, leaves the ship, or even passes it without me knowing about it. If something goes missing or my cargo is damaged, the intruder is found and taken care of within the next twenty-four hours."

Hiccup nodded in understanding.

Hiccup's companion gave her the paper, along with a second sheet with a map with a trailed line on it. "This is the course my ship takes during the season. Once the snow falls and ice begins to form, the ship will take another course. However the second course passes many ships, so I'd recommend you make your decision quickly."

Hiccup paused for a moment before sitting back in her chair, "I'll gather what I can and meet you during your first voyage as soon as I can."

The man smiled, "Wonderful. I look forward to seeing you again."

000

Hiccup entered the blacksmith shop much earlier then she usually would. Gobber wanted her no later than seven in the morning. She walked through the main entrance at five. Hiccup spent most of her morning sharpening dull weapons and making dragon saddles.

The reason for going to work so early was her series of dreams. Every night she had a dream that had to do with an event of her past. She hadn't had a normal dream, or a somewhat peaceful sleep, until just last night. That one dream stood out to her. Every other dream or vision was of her killing someone; but that dream, that one dream, it had to mean something.

"Ow!"

Hiccup was so deep in thought that she didn't notice her grip on one of the small hammers had grown loose. She dropped the hammer on her foot. Hiccup hopped on her other foot to one of the benches and sat down, rubbing her foot as it throbbed with pain.

"Ah-ha-how! Shit! Dammit!"

"Hiccup? Astro speed-walked across the room and sat down next to Hiccup, "What happened?"

"I just dropped a hammer on my foot!"

"Well, what are you doing in here so early in the morning? The shop doesn't open for another hour."

"Well," Hiccup's voice became softer when the pain became more bearable, "I wasn't gonna be able to sleep for the rest of the night so I came here to at least do something instead of lay in bed all morning waiting for something that's never gonna come."

"I was going to wait until later," Astro began, "but since you're already here, I guess I'll just tell you now."

"Tell me what?"

Astro sighed, "Remember when I told you that I didn't have any nightmares about you killing me?"

Hiccup nodded.

Astro fumbled his hands for a moment, "I... I lied. I did have one. But-it-wasn't-a-bad-death! Okay? I think it might have been caused by lighting or something! Look, I know that lying to you wasn't the best way to handle it, and I'm really sorry. I just didn't want you to feel worse than you already do. I know you're probably mad at me, and you have the right to be. I just... I'm sorry."

Hiccup looked down at her hands. "That's why I brought the Skrill back."

"What?"

"Those dreams aren't just dreams, Astro. They're warnings. If I don't learn to control myself, those dreams will come true, and everyone will die, including you. That's why I wanted us to bring that dragon back to Berk. I was hoping he could teach me to control my lightning. I don't want this to happen, Astro. It's not just Berk. If this dream happens, It'll move on to other people. No one will be safe from me, not even me... I'm scared, Astro."

"Hiccup, it won't happen. I know it won't. It's impossible; I mean, think of what you've done, all those times you saved us when we thought no one could. You can beat this, Hiccup. Don't ever doubt that."

"Why?" Hiccup asked, starting to feel better, "Because I'm a Viking?"

"Well yeah, that and the fact that if you let that doubt in, I'll be there to kick your ass if you do."

Hiccup laughed.

"Now," said Astro, "What's the plan? Are we going to find that Skrill?"

"Oh. Well, um..."

"Don't have a plan yet?"

"Actually, I do."

"Great. What is it?"

"That's just it. I can't tell you."

"Why not? Is it supposed to be a secret or something?"

"Well, yeah."

"I can keep a secret."

"No, Astro, it has to be a secret from you as well. I can't tell anyone."

"Can you at least confirm if it will help fix your lightning problem?"

"Yes, it will help. But in order for me to go though with it, no one else can know."

"Why can't anyone else know?"

"Because that's the way it has to be."

"It has to be kept from your friends and family?"

"I know you don't like this but I have to do it. It's the only way. Please, Astro, you have to trust me on this."

"... I just don't want you to get hurt."

"I won't."

Astro sighed, "Okay. I won't ask about it anymore. As far as me and the others know, you never even mentioned it."

"Thank you."


	8. Chapter 8

The days leading up to the full moon quickly grew worse than the days before Hiccup had met Draymore. When she was younger, the Snotlout and his friends would tease her, and she was scolded when she tried to defend herself. This time, however, the adults were the ones acting aggressively toward Hiccup. Whenever Hiccup passed by, she'd see some men holding the handles of their weapons. Some would glare at her and try to scare her off; that worked most of the time.

There was one time when Hiccup tried to enter the Great Hall to spend time with the others. She had barely walked through the doors when a woman approached and slapped her.

"What was that for?" Hiccup questioned.

"You shouldn't blame me!" the woman scolded, "It was either do it now, or use a bludgeon once you dug your claws into my son's chest."

To Hiccup's surprise, it was Snotlout who attempted to get between her and the growing mob. "You don't know that. None of us do."

Unfortunately, the people still wouldn't listen. They grew so angry that Astro and Draymore had to direct Hiccup safely out of the hall.

After that incident, none of Hiccup's friends were willing to leave her alone. They wouldn't even let her stay in her own house without someone there to watch out for her. Hiccup wasn't happy with her current condition but she was thankful to have someone there for her.

000

One evening, Jack lead Hiccup to the Cove to keep her mind off the village's growing fear. For a long time, neither said anything. Jack stood balanced on his staff while Hiccup sat on one of the branches of the large tree.

"Okay." said Jack, "Let's just try to keep the volume above zero. I've been wanting to talk to you about those nightmares."

"Not now, Jack."

"If we're not gonna talk now, then when are we gonna talk?" Jack floated up and sat down on one of the neighbouring branches of the tree, "I know that you have good intentions with talking with Pitch and all, but I don't trust him. I don't like that he wants you alone with him in every visit."

"Why don't you trust him?"

"Well, you know how Guardians use different events and days to bring hope to children?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, the Man in the Moon created him to use Nightmares as warnings for children, to keep them aware of anything that is a threat to them-"

Hiccup glanced to the entrance of the Cove and suddenly threw herself off the branch, crashing onto the ground painfully. A bola caught Hiccup by the left wing and tangled with one of the roots.

Four men ran at Hiccup with weapons at hand. One of them was Horc.

Jack jumped between the men and tried to wall them off with his ice. Unfortunately, he made Hiccup's state worse. The men did not believe in the Guardian, Jack Frost. When the ice grew from the ground, they believed that Hiccup had caused it.

Hiccup pulled on the ropes in an attempt to free her wing while Jack continued to throw blasts of frost at the men. Jack was only able to keep them at bay for a few moments. Horc managed to run through him to Hiccup.

Hiccup freed her wing just as Horc struck her with a balled fist. The two other men caught up and seized Hiccup by her arms. They held her in place as Horc repeatedly hit Hiccup with his club.

Jack reached for Horc's club at any chance he got. A few times he managed to grab it, but his grip wasn't strong enough to stop the large man. All the while he pleaded for them to show mercy.

Hiccup remained silent as she took one strike after another, completely focused on controlling herself. She could feel her anxiety growing inside her as it endlessly urged her to do something, anything to stop them; but she remained still. She didn't fight back, she didn't plead, she just stood.

"Why aren't you fighting back?" Horc taunted, "I thought you were a fierce dragon! How can you kill a Red Death but not be able to defend yourself from three men?!"

Hiccup took a blow to the shoulder.

"Confess what you are!"

Hiccup could feel another strike to her abdomen.

"SHOW YOURSELF YOU DEMON!"

Horc hit Hiccup one last time on her cheek. The impact sent Hiccup spinning and falling to her knees, her back turned to her attackers. Horc stared at the two black marks on Hiccup's back.

Hiccup's voice broke when she spoke, "Those dreams are warnings. All of it will become reality of I don't prevent it."

Horc nodded toward the others, "Well then, let's prevent it."

The two men took out ropes and pulled Hiccup to the tree roots. Hiccup glanced over her shoulder and saw Horc sharpening a knife.

"No! No, please!" Hiccup begged, "Horc! Don't do this! Please?!"

Hiccup's wrists were tied to two roots. Hiccup knelt between them, facing the tree. Horc pushed Hiccup against the tree and held the knife above her back.

"I'm sorry, Hiccup," Horc whispered, "but I have to do this."

Without saying another word, Horc dragged the tip of the blade along Hiccup's back, cutting through her skin and flesh. Hiccup shrieked at the pain and barely resisted the urge to fight back. Hiccup's screams were mixed with sobs. Tears began to fall from her eyes. The blood covered her back and began to slightly dampen her tunic.

Hiccup became terrified. This was just like the day Snotlout had tried to cut her wings off. She had tried to kill him then. She never admitted to trying, but when she went rabid, she had intended on killing that boy. It was different this time. Hiccup was scared of letting that happen again. Hiccup wished she was sleeping, and that this was just another one of the Nightmares. She pleaded that it would be, even though she knew it wasn't.

The sharp pain only began to cease when Hiccup felt Horc being pulled away by Stoick. Stoick intentionally stood between the mob and his child, like a bear would for her cubs.

Stoick glared at Horc for a long time. No one dared move or even speak; not even Hiccup had the courage to turn to face her father.


	9. Chapter 9

Horc began breathing heavily as he tried to think of what to say. Only now was he starting to realize that attacking Hiccup was the worst thing he could ever have done. Hiccup was Stoick's daughter. She was the descendent of a Chieftain. Attacking the child of a Chief or deliberately putting their life at risk put them at the mercy of the victim. The victim would get to chose the man's fate. Horc wanted one, but there was no excuse. He had to face the consequences.

Stoick on the other hand did his best to remain calm. "One reason, Horc. One reason is all I ask for; one good reason for me to spare you even after I've seen you cutting my daughter with a knife!"

"There-I..." Horc stammered, "Stoick, I didn't mean to harm her-"

Stoick quickly lost his temper as he angrily yelled, "Good fucking job showing that!"

"There is no excuse for what I've done, but please Stoick, forgive me. I beg you!"

"How is beating the shit out of someone helping them!?"

"Please! Pardon me, I beg you to show mercy! I'll do anything! I swear!"

"You didn't show Hiccup mercy when she screamed in pain! Why should I show mercy to you!?"

"Dad!"

Stoick turned to face Hiccup, still bound to the tree roots. Hiccup glanced at Stoick over her shoulder, "Killing him won't reverse what he's done. Let him live."

Draymore rested his hand on Hiccup's shoulder. Astro stood behind Horc. The twins each took a position surrounding the men. Fishlegs and Snotlout stood next to the tree, beneath Jack as he hovered below the branches.

Hiccup glanced toward Horc, then back to Stoick, "He has a reason for doing this."

Draymore cut Hiccup loose as Stoick asked, "What is that reason?"

Hiccup rubbed her wrists once they were free, "He was trying help me keep us safe. He has a point... It's no longer safe for you if I stay here. I have to leave."

Everyone fell silent again. Horc looked at the others, slightly hoping that they'd agree with Hiccup.

After a long time, Stoick spoke. "Where will you go? here aren't any other islands in our territory."

Hiccup shook her head, "I'm not staying near Berk. That's too close. I have to go beyond our borders."

"But Alvin-"

"Dad, I understand that leaving is dangerous, but I have to do this. It's the only way to make sure nothing bad happens to you."

"Stoick," said Astro, "Hiccup's right. It's not safe for anyone for her to be here, not even her. There's nothing else we can do."

Stoick sighed, "Are you sure you'll e alright on your own? You don't want anyone going with you?"

Hiccup nodded, "I'm sure."

000

Hiccup packed a blanket and a pillow, along with some food and water for her journey. Hiccup opened to front door of her house to her waiting friends. One by one they said their goodbyes.

"Don't get yourself killed out there," Astro chuckled as he tried to hold back his fear, "okay?"

Hiccup laughed softly and nodded.

Draymore and Stoick hugged Hiccup at the same time, neither wanting to let go. Everyone feared for Hiccup's safety. Even Hiccup was afraid herself.

Stoick ruffled Hiccup's hair, "I love you, Hiccup."

Hiccup hugged Stoick one more time, "I love you too, dad."

Hiccup walked down the steps before glancing back at her friends one last time. With that she took flight and disappeared above the clouds.

000

Hiccup arrived at Dragon Island around midnight. When she landed she looked at the moon. Luckily, it was a full, round circle.

Hiccup cupped her hands around her mouth, "Gale? It's me, Hiccup! I need your help!"

For a moment it seemed as though no one was nearby. Then Hiccup heard rustling in the trees behind her. As Hiccup turned to face the source of the noise, a black-winged Lighren jumped down from the leaves and landed in front of her. Gale stood up straight and spread her arms as if she had done the work of a modern acrobat before taking a bow.

"Hello stranger." Gale said gleefully, "What brings you here on this fine night?"

"How fine this night really is depends on whether or not you and I have the same idea of 'fine'." Hiccup replied.

Gale pointed up to the sky, "Didn't you notice? The sky is alive with Aurvandil's Fire! A sight like that only appears one night every ten years!"

Hiccup followed Gale's gesture to the dancing lights that reached along the sky.

Gale continued as she meandered passed Hiccup, "I love watching Aurvandil's Fire. It's so cool! And to top it all off, my good friend, the Flightmare passes through here during the Fire! Have you seen a Fightmare, Hiccup?"

"Well, Aurvandil's Fire is the thing I really like about tonight. But Flightmares? Not so much."

Gale glanced at Hiccup over her shoulder, "Why not?"

"I have a friend whose uncle was killed by one. He was only six when it happened."

Gale looked at Hiccup sympathetically. Then her expression changed to curiosity, "So this 'he' you mentioned.. is he a certain someone you like?"

Hiccup glared and shook her head without thinking. However as she shook her head, her cheeks turned red with blush.

Gale giggled, "I knew it! So, what's he like?"

Hiccup reinforced her glare, "Can we talk about something more important please?"

Gale nodded, "Alright, we'll talk about your crush later. What's quote-unquote more important than him at the moment?"

Hiccup inhaled deeply.


	10. Chapter 10

When Hiccup explained her current problem, Gale openly welcomed Hiccup to stay in her cave. Hiccup spent three months with Gale. Gale coincidentally had the same abilities as Hiccup did, so helping Hiccup learn to use her abilities was relatively easy. In return for Gale's hospitality, Hiccup had to hunt and help keep both of them well-fed.

Hiccup learned to hunt with the bow and sometimes got to hunt like a wild dragon. Gale even taught Hiccup to stay hidden and protected in dangerous places. Gale even told Hiccup stories of her adventures. She even shared a rumor of an object that could tell anyone anything about any dragon that had ever existed.

Gale grew up alone, orphaned since seven years old. She didn't morn her parents' death however. Her father had abused her, perhaps murdered her own mother. After she survived a fire in her village, Gale left her home in one of the few boats that didn't burn. She lived in different islands with the dragons and learned of their struggles against the humans. Gale vowed to avenge every unjustly-harmed dragon and bring the humans under the dragons' rule. She started out by teaching herself to fight and use weapons. She mastered the sword and bow by the age of twelve. Gale commenced her mission by acting as an assassin for hire. As time passed Gale quickly became wanted to many murders or raids on people of all classes; chieftains, generals, merchants, farmers, anyone she could find that had done wrong to another person. By the time Gale was fourteen, she eventually learned both sides of the feud between the dragons and humans, and finally canceled her plot. Now, Gale's passion was searching for the mythical artifact. She only looked for clients when she need provisions and couldn't supply them herself.

Gale's background and stories intrigued Hiccup. The more Gale revealed about her past, the more Hiccup thought of Gale as some kind of hero or future martyr.

000

One evening, Gale and Hiccup were sitting around the fire in front of the cave and telling each other another marathon of adventures. Hiccup had just finished telling Gale about her first adventure.

Gale's jaw couldn't have dropped any lower when Hiccup finished, "You killed the Red Death?"

"Yep. But not without a scratch. I ended up losing part of my left wing."

Gale chuckled, "You actually killed a Red Death. Well good riddance. That dragon was the biggest tyrant I've ever known. It's about time someone put him in his place."

Hiccup nodded.

Gale side-glanced at Hiccup, "So, about that someone I asked you about three months ago, what's he like?'

Hiccup stared at the fire in front of them as she thought of something to say, "Well,He has blonde hair, blue eyes, a very nice smile... He's really interested in weaponry. He's good at it too... And... he's really sweet. Um... He's also kind of protective of me."

"Have you kissed?"

Hiccup chuckled, "Yes we have. He often punches me in the gut first."

Gale laughed, "Why?"

"Most of the time I deserve it!" Hiccup laughed back, "He punches me, tells my why I deserved it, then he kisses me and tells me, 'that's for everything else'!"

Both girls laughed for a moment. When the both calmed down, Gale's expression slowly turned to serious.

"Hey, Hiccup? Did I ever tell you that I have another name?"

Hiccup shook her head.

"Well," Gale inhaled, "I do. I've never used it since I was seven. I couldn't. It reminded me of my parents, and my village..."

Hiccup leaned closer to Gale, "What is your real name?"

Gale sighed, almost crying, "I never told you this, but... the fire that burned my village was my fault. I started it. Everyone I knew died because of me. I mauled a boy, I murdered my father, I burned everyone alive. I never left anyone alone, not even the children. I even tore a baby apart." Gale looked down at a small bag that hung on her belt, "I've been carrying one of their hearts in this bag all this time..." Gale was sobbing by then, "I didn't even feel sorry for them. I just... laughed. I laughed at them. I even salvaged their valuables from their homes, anything of high worth I could carry."

Hiccup began to remember her dreams. She tried to remain calm as she rested a hand on Gale's shoulder.

Gale took a moment to calm herself before looking to Hiccup, "My real name... is Hiccup Haddock the Third."

Almost immediately, Hiccup gasped and jumped back. Gale stared at Hiccup with confusion.

Hiccup paced back and forth around the fire shaking her head, "No, this isn't happening. This is not real! It's not true!" She turned to face Gale, "TELL ME IT'S NOT TRUE!"

"What can't be true? What is so bad about my name?"

"Gale! That is my name! I am Hiccup! I am that same girl! That name belongs to me! Why do you have it?... Who was your father? What was his name? Who was that boy you killed? What was your village called?"

"Hiccup calm down! I can't answer fifteen questions at once!"

Hiccup breathed deeply to calm herself. She sat down in the sand and stared at the fire.

Gale slowly answered Hiccup questions, "My father was Stoick the Vast... the boy I killed was called Snotlout Jorgenson. The village I burned was called Berk..."

"All those people are still alive, Gale. Berk is still here. Everyone is here."

Gale faced Hiccup, "How is that possible?"

Hiccup glanced at up at Gale, "I think I know... I've been having nightmares about everything that you just told me. Maybe you somehow came to life through them... The doll."

"What?"

"A few months ago, Mildew cut my hair. he used it to make a voodoo doll. He must have used it to make you. But if you're real, that means those dreams have already..."

"So... all I am is a clone? I'm just a bad dream?"

Neither of them spoke. Gale eventually suggested that they discussed the subject tomorrow. Hiccup agreed.


	11. Chapter 11

Hiccup looked around her as the interior of a fishing boat formed. She was holding a torch and standing in the middle of one of the rooms. She stood looking at a small group of the fishermen. They stared at her with frightened eyes. They looked pale and weak. Hiccup turned to run out of the ship, but she was grabbed from behind and pulled into the group.

000

Hiccup sat up moments after opening her eyes. She looked around the room as she calmed down. She was back in Gale's cave.

"Morning, sunshine."

Hiccup glanced to her left where Gale was facing the wall, pulling her tunic over her head and down over her body. Gale was wearing her usual deep purple tunic with extremely pale, pink leggins. Gale's right arm was wrapped in grey cloth, and reached between her fingers to make a type of glove for her hand. Gale wore faded, brown fur boots that were held together by white cloth. Gale's purple tunic only had one short sleeve, so she wore a grey sheet over her exposed left side like a Roman governor would. Gale's purple tunic was the same, loose one she had worn the day her village was burned, so some of her abdomen was visible beneath the grey 's clothing had small bloodstains from her missions and past crimes. Gale's hair had turned black as a permanent effect from Gale's anger and stress from childhood; however, Gale did take some Glowing Algae from the rivers ten years ago and mix it with purple paint, turning it into hair dye. Purple, glowing streaks ran down Gale's hair. Her hair was tied back in a loose ponytail, some of her bangs were tied to one side.

Gale turned to face Hiccup as she tied a leather belt around her waist to hold the robe in place, "Sleep well? Not counting the Nightmares of course."

Hiccup shrugged.

Gale rested her hands on her hips as she observed Hiccup, "Well you may or may not have had a good rest, but you certainly look terrible."

Hiccup chuckled, "Yeah, thank you. Just what I need to hear... How bad is it?"

"Well, your braid is a rat's nest and you look like you have deadly insomnia."

Hiccup groaned and fall back onto her bed.

Gale grabbed an old brush off her small table and pulled Hiccup into a sitting position.

"Your family may let you sleep in from time to time, but I don't. You're getting up if I have to hold you up myself."

Hiccup laughed again as Gale began working away the mess in the braid. Gale waited a moment in silence as she removed the sash from Hiccup's hair before thinking of something to say.

"So... as fate would have it, I am a darker version of you. Is that correct?"

"I guess so."

"You're not mad about that, are you?"

"Well, no... not entirely. I mean... I'm not completely happy to know that I have an alternate body going around killing people, because I look like her and others will begin to think that I am her.. even though I am technically, but at the same time, I'm not. Boy this is confusing."

"Yep." Gale nodded, "It's definitely the last thing one would expect to see in their lifetime. It was for me. What's the weirdest part for you?"

"Well... the weirdest part would have to be how psychotic you look. In-a-cool-way! Sorry."

"No, it's fine." Gale paused to think of something, "I think the weirdest part would be... the fact that everyone I killed is alive. That's creepy too."

"Yeah."

"But, technically, they're not my family, and as of the past few months you've told me about, they haven't really done anything harmful to you... except for Mildew of course."

"Are you?"

"To be honest, when I learned that they were alive, my first thought was that I should go kill them again. I know, it's selfish, and wrong, and everything I shouldn't be thinking. So, I've decided that I won't even go near them."

Hiccup glanced at Gale over her shoulder, "Really?"

Gale nodded, "They're your friends, and your family. I can't take that from you just because I went through something different. So, I'm promising you that I won't kill them. I'll let them live. I'll even help keep them alive if needed."

Gale turned Hiccup's head to face away as she finished fixing Hiccup's hair. She helped Hiccup to her feet and had her stand in front of an old mirror that leaned against the wall. Gale had Hiccup's hair in a ponytail, with a small braid sliding down the top of it. Gale used Hiccup's sash to hold the hair up. The sash was tied in a bow small bow with the ends of the sash hanging halfway down the ponytail. Hiccup's shorter hair outlined the sides of her head since Gale couldn't put it in the tail.

"There you go." said Gale, proudly, "That's much better. What do you think?"

Hiccup didn't answer. She had seen her distorted reflection in water or metal from a weapon, but she had never clearly see her reflection until now. She could make out every detail on her. One thing she noticed was a small scar on the right side of her chin.

"Hey, Gale," Hiccup pointed to the scar, "do you know when we got this?"

Gale shook her head, "As far as I know, we've had it forever. I don't remember getting it. I don't even remember who may have giving it to me."

Hiccup's glance switched from her reflection to Gale's "Also when did you get those scars on your cheeks?"

Gale waved it off casually, "It was me. I did it to look kind of scary. I was ten, stupid. Okay, done with that. Let's go get something done, go flying, do something outside this cave!"

000

Gale and Hiccup took a walk through the forest to talk about their powers.

"Okay, so first of, we have your rank."

Hiccup looked at Gale in confusion, "My rank-"

"No-shh!" Gale pressed one finger against Hiccup's lips, "Shut up, I'm not finished. You are a Titan Lighren. And if you can guess how rare that is, you can consider yourself extremely unique. As a Titan Lighren, you have the Essence of three individual dragons. So far, it looks like you have the Essence of a Night Fury."

"What about the Skrill?"

"I don't think your lightning abilities reflect the Skrill. I've seen Skrill Lighrens before. Like the Skrill, they can only be active in a storm or near a source of electricity. You and I have been using it whenever we've wanted... well, me when I've wanted, you when you lose control. So I think the lightning has something to do with being part-Night Fury. After all, the one thing we keep hearing is that the Night Fury is the 'Unholy Offspring of Lightning and Death Itself'."

"But I didn't get the lightning until after I got struck by lightning."

"Or maybe you didn't realise you could manipulate electricity until after you experienced it. I've noticed that as a Lighren gets older, they learn that they have more powers than they thought. Perhaps a Lighren's powers come as they age, like puberty or coming of age."

"Oh shit."

"Yeah, I know. That is the worst part of being alive. Especially that time of the-"

"No, it's not that."

"What?"

"It's the Skrill."

"What about the Skrill?"

"He wants the Skrill. Dagur wants the Skrill. The Skrill has been the symbol of the Berserkers for generations. Dagur sent his men to get the Skrill when they found it in the ice. When Dagur finds out wer took the Skrill, he's going to attack Berk looking for it!"

Gale turned to Hiccup, "You mean that psycho that kept trying to kill us when we were kids?"

"Yep. He's gone more insane since he found out I'm a Lighren. He keeps trying to take me back to his island and use me as a weapon. Not only that, but he keeps looking at me weird."

Gale shook her head sarcastically as she laughed, "Ha! Rapist."

Hiccup nearly jumped back, "Woah! Hold on! It's not like that!"

"Did he look you up and down?"

"Well, yes."

"Make certain advances?"

"Yeah?"

"Did he ever kiss you? Or did he at least try?"

"Oh! Gods! Yes! Why?!"

Gale laughed again, "Like I said, rapist."

"Dear Thor, I've been cursed."

"Sad truth. I know. But at least you have a good reason to beat the shit out of him."

"Dear gods, you're like Astro. What is it with you and having violence as an answer for everything?"

"Oh, it's not violence. It's a simple, subtle type of communication to the one person you hate with a passion."

"Can we just focus on the Skrill? Dagur could be scanning the archipelago for him right now. We have to find the Skrill before Dagur does."

"Okay," said Gale, "you do have a point there. I know where the Skrill might be. After I took him from Berk, I suggested that he go to one of the rural islands on the southern side of the archipelago. We should look there first."


	12. Chapter 12

I am so sorry for the lack of chapters these past few weeks. I was distracted by the fifth chapter of the game Bendy and the Ink Machine. I will try to put my focus back on my stories. Now that that's been discussed, let the chapter begin.

000

Gale lead Hiccup in the direction of the southern islands. Unwilling to travel in silence, Gale looked toward Hiccup, "So, have you had any scary dreams lately? Apart from the one last night, I mean."

Hiccup recalled what she could, "Well, a few months ago, I had a dream that I was talking with some guy about an arrangement to stay with him in his ship for a while."

Gale chuckled and shook her head, "I don't remember doing anything like that. I don't stay with people anymore."

"Anymore?"

"Okay, we're getting off track. Anything else I should know?"

"Well, I told my friend about it, along with the other nightmares, and he wants to help. But, when I told him that I had to keep it a secret, he wasn't happy. I'm guessing he's worried about me. I want to tell him what I'm doing, but I don't want to do it without you being okay with it. Look, I know you want me to keep you a secret, but Astro wants to be sure that I'm safe."

Gale sighed, "I don't know if I can face him. I killed him with my own hands."

"Well, did you kill Draymore?"

"Who's Draymore?"

"He's my brother. Like me, he's part dragon. The only difference is that he can turn into a dragon at will."

"Huh... I've never met a Lighren that can turn into a dragon. What does Draymore look like?"

"Well, imagine me as a boy... Why did I just say that?"

"Does his hair change colour when he's stressed?"

"No. But he does look pretty scary when.. he... Gale?"

Gale was staring below them. Hiccup followed Gale's gaze and saw a purple dragon lying on the beach of an island. It was the Skrill.

Gale and Hiccup landed on the beach a few feet from the Skrill. Gale observed the wounds on the dragon before looking to Hiccup, "Outcasts. The wounds are from dulled weapons."

Hiccup shook her head, "The Outcasts must have found out about the Skrill. Why did I think about bringing him back to Berk?"

Gale suddenly leapt over the Skrill and spread her wings defensively. Hiccup watched as Outcasts began running from the forest toward them. Hiccup barely had time to react before she felt two hands seize her by her arms.

Hiccup would have fought back, but she didn't think to do so. She was distracted by Gale. Gale raised her arms beside her, and fire rose all around her and the Outcasts. The fire burned between the Outcasts and the injured Skrill. Gale stunned the warriors as she shrieked like a banshee and began to claw at them. Eventually, one of the Outcasts raised his spear and impaled the young assassin.

Gale was wanted for countless murders, but she was wanted alive. Because of this, the Outcast only used the spear to subdue her without mortally wounding her.

Multiple Outcasts surrounded the Lighren and secured her in chains. One Outcasts covered her mouth with a muzzle. Gale fought back with such vicious behavior that it took four Outcasts to hold her.

"Hold her down men!" boomed a deep voice. It was Alvin. "We don't want these animals flying away on us again." He smiled at Gale as she tried to remove the chains, "That goes for this one. She has a reputation for being a little violent with people. Just ask her parents."

The Outcasts laughed as Gale glared at Alvin.

"Well," Alvin continued, "That doll worked pretty well. Wouldn't you say, Hiccup? You think one would be more thankful to the people who brought her to life."

Gale yelled at Alvin through the muzzle. Though her voice was muffled, everyone understood her as she said, "Go fuck yourself, you snake!"

"Calm down, woman!" exclaimed a familiar voice. Hiccup looked over her shoulder as Dagur the Deranged walked toward them. Dagur gestured towards Gale, "Where's that sweet, innocent girl I used to know? With that kind of language, one might question your upbringing."

Gale shook her head, ignoring the Berserker chief, "Why should I be thankful? You're not the reason I'm here, Hiccup is!"

Gale nodded toward Hiccup when she said Hiccup's name. Only then did Dagur notice Hiccup. He smiled deviously at her as Alvin rolled his eyes.

"I don't really care who you believe is responsible for your existence. All I care about is building my army without another annoying brat getting in the way. Finish her!"

"No!" Hiccup pulled herself free form the Outcast's grasp and stood between Alvin and Gale. "Don't kill her!"

Alvin scoffed, "Well, if I shouldn't kill her," he leaned over Hiccup, "give me a reason to let her live."

Almost immediately, without thinking, Hiccup made a promise she would dread for the rest of her life, "I'll go back to Outcast Island with you."

Everyone fell silent. Hiccup realised what she had said, but there was no turning back now. Hiccup inhaled deeply before she continued, "If you let her go, I will go back with you. I won't fight back, I won't run away. I'll do whatever you tell me to do. Please just let her go."

Alvin smiled as he looked to the Outcasts holding Gale. He nodded, and Gale was released. "Any more requests while the door is still open, Hiccup?"

Hiccup nodded, "Leave Berk alone."

Alvin hesitated, "Fine. Having you with me will be enough revenge." He looked at Gale, "Get out of here. If I see you again, Hiccup's well-being will be at greater risk once she's useless."

Gale quickly flew away. She flew so quickly, she was out of sight within seconds.

Hiccup looked to the ground in slight regret. She had just given herself to the enemy.


	13. Chapter 13

Hiccup sat in front of Alvin as the Outcasts raised the anchor of the ship. Alvin had taken her to the a less crowded part of the ship to discuss his expectations for her staying with him. She sat across from Alvin.

"Now," Alvin began, "you will be staying in a special cell I've been preparing for you. When you're not in your cell, you will be wearing chains. Oh, and there's one more thing I need to ask of you."

Alvin stood from his seat and looked down on Hiccup. She whined as Alvin walked toward her.

Alvin placed a hand on Hiccup's shoulder, "There's something I've been needing for a long time, but I can't get it on my own."

Hiccup tried to sound bold as she asked, "What is it you need?"

Alvin chuckled as he prepared to explain further.


End file.
